Month: November 2026

889.1864.Such is the Force of Happiness—

Such is the Force of Happiness—
The Least—can lift a Ton
Assisted by its stimulus—

Who Misery—sustain—
No Sinew can afford—
The Cargo of Themselves—
Too infinite for Consciousness’
Slow capabilities.
…………………………………………………………

My interpretation of F889.

I prefer both of ED’s alternates, “Strength” instead of “Force” (Line 1) because Stanza 2 describes weakness and “Benumbed abilities” in Line 8 because misery numbs the soul:

Such is the {Strength} of Happiness—
The Least—can lift a Ton
Assisted by its stimulus—

Who Misery—sustain—
No Sinew can afford—
The Cargo of Themselves—
Too infinite for Consciousness’
{Benumbed abilities} –

Happiness allows a meagre soul to accomplish miracles, but misery “benumbs” the soul so much that life seems too hard to continue.

888.1864.’Twould ease – a Butterfly –

‘Twould ease – a Butterfly –
Elate – a Bee –
Thou’rt neither –
Neither – thy capacity –

But, Blossom, were I,
I would rather be
Thy moment
Than a Bee’s Eternity –

Content of fading
Is enough for me –
Fade I unto Divinity –

And Dying – Lifetime –
Ample as the Eye –
Her least attention raise on me –
……………………………………………………………………….

An interpretation of F888, ‘’Twould ease – a Butterfly –’

Stanza 1

‘Twould ease – a Butterfly –
Elate – a Bee –
Thou’rt neither –
Neither – thy capacity –

S1.

A blossom would ease a butterfly, elate a bee, but you are neither, you can’t fly or feed on flowers.

Stanza 2.

But, Blossom, were I,
I would rather be
Thy moment
Than a Bee’s Eternity –

S2

But, if I were a blossom, I would rather be visited by you for only a moment, than by a bee for all eternity.

Stanza 3.

Content of fading
Is enough for me –
Fade I unto Divinity –

S3

If you did visit my blossom, that would be enough for me, even if I then faded into divinity.

Stanza 4

And Dying – Lifetime –
Ample as the Eye –
Her least attention raise on me –

S4.

And as I died, my lifetime would have been ample if your eye had given me the least attention.
……………………………………………………………………………………….

A blossom would ease a butterfly, elate a bee, but you are neither, you can’t fly or feed on flowers. But, if I were a blossom, I would rather be visited by you for only a moment, than by a bee for all eternity.

If you did visit my blossom, that would be enough for me, even if I then faded into divinity. And as I died, my lifetime would have been ample if your eye had given me the least attention.

887.1864.Severer Service of myself

Severer Service of myself
I—hastened to demand
To fill the awful Vacuum
Your life had left behind—

I worried Nature with my Wheels
When Hers had ceased to run—
When she had put away Her Work
My own had just begun.

I strove to weary Brain and Bone—
To harass to fatigue
The glittering Retinue of nerves—
Vitality to clog

To some dull comfort Those obtain
Who put a Head away
They knew the Hair to—
And forget the color of the Day—

Affliction would not be appeased—
The Darkness braced as firm
As all my stratagem had been
The Midnight to confirm—

No Drug for Consciousness—can be—
Alternative to die
Is Nature’s only Pharmacy
For Being’s Malady—
………………………………………………………………………

My interpretation F887, ‘ Severer Service of myself’, with ED’s alternate words in Lines 3, 16, 18 in curly brackets. I prefer her originals in each case:

Stanza 1.

Severer Service of myself
I—hastened to demand
To fill the awful Vacuum {Longitude}
Your life had left behind—

S1.

After you left, I hastened to demand severer effort of myself to fill the awful vacuum you had left behind.

Stanza 2.

I worried Nature with my Wheels
When Hers had ceased to run—
When she had put away Her Work
My own had just begun.

S2.

I twiddled with my time. Even when my body told me to sleep, I wrote poems into the night.

Stanza 3.

I strove to weary Brain and Bone—
To harass to fatigue
The glittering Retinue of nerves—
Vitality to clog

S3.

I tried to push my brain and body beyond fatigue, I tried to clog the vitality of my busy nerves.

Stanza 4.

To some dull comfort Those obtain
Who put a Head away
They knew the Hair to—
And forget the color {figure} of the Day—

S4.

My tired brain refused to think; I could see the color of the hair but missed the color of the day.

Stanza 5.

Affliction would not be appeased—
The Darkness {Trouble} braced as firm
As all my stratagem had been
The Midnight to confirm—

S5.

But no matter how I tried, the blackness braced as firm. All my stratagem had simply confirmed that life is midnight.

Stanza 6.

No Drug for Consciousness—can be—
Alternative to die
Is Nature’s only Pharmacy
For Being’s Malady—

S6.

No laudanum can be an alternative to death, death is nature’s only solution to the misery of life.
………………………………………………………..

Combined stanza interpretations:

After you left, I hastened to demand severer effort of myself to fill the awful vacuum you had left behind. I twiddled with my time, even when my body told me to sleep; I wrote poems into the night. I tried to push my brain and body beyond fatigue, I tried to clog the vitality of my busy nerves.

My tired brain refused to think; I could see the color of the hair but missed the color of the day. No matter how I tried, the blackness braced firm. All my stratagem had simply confirmed that life is midnight. No laudanum can be an alternative to death, death is nature’s only solution to the misery of life.